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Customers most agreed on the following attributes:
I havent paid a cable television bill in 2 years. I receive about 15 channels from an indoor amplified antenna that I mounted in my attic. I bought this in anticipation of receiving HDTV through a converter box. I was under the understanding that there was actually a diference in an HDTV antenna. I expected a degrade in VHF signal and enhanced UHF channels. My reception was worse across the board after connecting. I tried an extra amplifier and then even tried carrying it around my yard. Nope ... its going back tomorrow.
from Reno, NV on 5/3/2008
I was ready to purchase a 80" boom antenna when I came across this antenna and after reading the reviews decided to buy it as the size and ease of setup was very appealing compared to installing a large boom antenna on top of my two story home in Reno, NV. I was hoping to get the three major networks in digital which are broadcast in VHF from the same tower location. I had a UHF omni directional UHF antenna on order through Amazon. Antennaweb suggested a small omni directional UHF antenna and a medium directional VHF antenna to get most of the over the air digital broadcast stations in my area. When I went to buy this antenna I was surprised at the size of the box and had my doubts or how it would perform. I brought it home and in less than 10 minutes I temporarily had it set up pointing out my first floor living room window and was amazed at how many channels my channel search picked up. I grabbed a ladder and took the antenna outside and mounted it on the house just above my old 'dish' and in less than five minutes I was scanning for stations again. The scan resulted in 30 stations! This antenna is picking up almost all stations listed on antenaweb and then some. I have a 42" Hitachi Plasma with a built in tuner. Ther towers that the stations I am receiving are coming from are located in 4 different locations 4 -16 miles away. The signal strength is in the 90s for most stations, some as high as 98 even from towers it is not pointimg towards.The picture qualty on the digital channels is unbelievable, better thn my HD cable signal. The analog stations vary in quality with the lowest channels (2 and 4) being the worst with ghosting, although most of my analog stations are also broadcast in digital already and all will by next year. I am going to send the UHF antenna back when it arrives and probably cancel my cable. If you live in a location similar to mine, buy this antenna, you will be very impressed. I have not hooked up to multiple TVs yet so I can not report on that but if it does not work well with multiple TVs I will buy more of these great priced antennas.
from Southern California on 5/2/2008
There is one digital channel, which has four sub-channels that no antenna I had was able to pick up with any consistency but with this antenna I am able to strongly receive those channels all the time. My only problem with this antenna is that if you decide not to mount it to a wall it is not really ideal because it can't really stand up on its own without falling over. Plus it needs to be placed somewhere high up. I have one antenna on a tall unplugged lamp and another on top a shelf. Ideally if you can mount it to a wall that would be best.
Set up was easy. I was concerned at first when trying to find the best signal for an analog station. BUT, when I had the TV tune in any digital stations I was quite surprised to get 12 stations and the fartherest away was ~70 miles. The pictures are flawless!
from Troy, IL on 4/27/2008
This is the first antenna I tried based on the mostly glowing reviews. I cancelled my cable and just went with the digital HDTV signal in my area. I first went to the cable TV splitter in my crawl space and hooked this antenna up to the cable going to my HDTV jack. My HDTV immediately started picking up digital stations on this antenna in the crawl space. Amazing! Then I took it outside and hooked it up to where the cable TV used to enter my home on the side of my house. I bolted it to the old cable TV box and pointed it in the correct direction according to antenna web which is 30 miles from my house. I put the line amplifier where the cable TV input line used to go into the splitter. Then I hooked the other end up to the line going to my HDTV jack. This is a 25 foot run from the outside to where the splitter was and another 15 feet to where the HDTV jack is located. This antenna is mounted only 5 feet off the ground on the old cable TV box on the side of my house, but it has a clear line of sight in the direction of the television transmitters. Whoa, let me tell you this small lightweight antenna picks up every digital television station crystal clear! Height does not matter as long as you have a clear line of sight. The 40 foot length of RG-59 didn't affect the signal strength in the least bit. This is the final configuration I left it in. It looks great on the side of my house, very small and unassuming. The line amplifier resides in my crawl space in an unassuming place. It picks up every digital station in the St Louis area VHF 2,4,5,8,9,11 and UHF 24,30 crystal clear from 30 miles away. It picked up the analog signals but they were terrible. This is not an analog antenna. It seems to be designed specifically for digital signals and it does the job superbly. This is the antenna to get. My local Radio Shack sales rep told me this antenna would not work from 30 miles away and recommended a roof antenna. I sure am glad I didn't listen to him!
from Colorado Springs on 4/24/2008
I had two of these. Both units had the same problem. When unscrewing the cable, the entire connector rotates, breaking it off of the circuit board inside. luckily i have a soldering iron. But geez. after it happened to the 2nd one, i was just like 'oh come on'. very cheap construction, not worth what radio shack charges.
Difficult device. Bought to better my signal for my digital converter box. Worked poorly, didn't improve my signal what so ever.
WE TRYED SETTING IT UP IN OUR LIVING ROOM AND NOTHING AT ALL. SO I TOOK IT OUT SIDE AND HELD IT ALL AROUND OUR BACK YARD AND NOTHING. I EVEN PUT IT UP ON THE TOP OF OUR OLD ANTENNA TOWER AND NOTHING. IT WAS VERY EASY TO HOOK UP. IT WOULD OF BEEN GREAT IF IT WOULD OF PICKED UP AT LEAST OUR NASCAR CHANNEL BUT NOTHING AT ALL. SO ITS GOING BACK FIRST THING THIS MORNING. I WOULD OF TAKEN IT BACK LAST NIGHT BUT WE KEPT TRYING TO GET IT TO WORK. DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME OR GAS MONEY.
from Houston, TX on 4/9/2008
I have this set-up indoors (was going to put it in the attic, but ended-up working fine indoors). For my situation, it would not work at all without the ac-powered amplification.... but it does work very well with it. Interestingly, the best positioning of the antenna ended-up face-down behind the flat screen. Not pointed, not elevated, just lying face down behind the television. Go figure.
I have tried many antennas and by far this one is the best! Simply awesome!! I put it in my attic and can pick up all channels within 50 miles. My guess is the people who didn't rate this one 5 stars were way too deep in their house or didn't know where their local towers were. They probably didn't experiment with it's placement enough either. To check it's strength, I first placed it on my front porch and picked up stations about 50 miles away at about 40 percent. Then I took it in my attic and BAM!! 80-90 percent on almost all channels. It took me about 20 minutes to get the farthest station in its range perfectly dialed in. What I did was look on antenna.org and choose one the channels the farthest away from you, then I went up the list to find one that I could receive. Once you get that one dialed in, the rest are great. Very easy!
Currently this antenna is on top of my roof and attached to my drain vent pipe. I get 10 digital stations total which is great since I live in an area where the signals are hard to get being in a valley. I have tried every indoor antenna possible and have only been able to pick up 2 digital channels. This antenna is great since it is very small and unnoticeable on your roof. It pulls an amazingly strong and very stable signal. If you are considering an outdoor antenna try this first. I also tried the Philips MANT940 which was good but not as good as this, also the RadioShack DA-5200 is smaller. I'm currently pulling a steady signal from 43 miles away! The only thing that would make this product better is a bigger U clamp mount so you can conveniently attach this antenna to a drain vent pipe easily. I had to attach a narrower poll to my vent pipe first in order to mount this. Otherwise a great buy!
from L. A. (San Pedro, 25th & Gaffey) on 4/4/2008
It completely fills my needs, clearly receiving local digital channels 2.1, 4.1*, 5.1, 7.1, 9.1, 11.1, & 13.1 from one fixed position indoors. A bonus is that it looks relatively good while doing so!*according to [...] I'm 37.1 - 37.4 miles from the transmitters, & 4.1 is a harder-to-receive "green" station, which matches my own personal experience, but more on this below.I'm on a hill, on the top floor, but there's a building of very nearly equal height blocking my view of the transmitter. Using rabbit ears with a UHF loop I had to re-position it AND re-tune its dial knob for different channels (analog OR digital) & even then sometimes the picture was poor*, even after I discovered that hanging the antenna from the ceiling (by the UHF loop) made a HUGE improvement.*Often the analog channel was clearer than it's digital version, & 13.1 wouldn't come in at all. antennaweb doesn't show 13.1, but it shows 13 as "green".I wasted considerably more than what this antenna cost on a big, ugly Terk TV55, which didn't even work as well as the rabbit ears, for analog OR digital. In fact it worked better when I disconnected it (just the coax cable attached to the TV!)I connected this Radio Shack antenna to the nice long coax that was included*, put it face down on the adjacent couch, connected it to the TV, & even before I plugged in the antenna's power cord I got better reception than the rabbit ears.*I thought this was nice, in case I had to position it far from the TV, but I moved it around all over the place, & I get the best signal with it screwed to the back of the top corner of my flat-panel TV: I removed one of the TV's trim screws, & attached the RadioShack mount with a longer screw.For ME* it's best on a vertical plane (as expected) but for some strange reason it "likes" to be "sideways" (so the graphics read normal when you're lying down!).* "Your mileage may vary", as each location & its surroundings is unique.
I tried two different antennas, and this is clearly the better antenna for reception strength. I live between 25-40 miles from two different sets of towers in slightly different directions. With this antenna I can comfortably get HD signals from both directions without having to adjust the antenna. I have it mounted indoors on the side of a bookshelf. It is one of the more attractive antennas in my opinion, and with a white shelf, you barely notice it. Very discreet size. Note: I am primarily interested in the UHF frequency, so I don't know how this performs for VHF.
Installation took 15 minutes, and that included having to go out to the garage for the screwdriver and mounting the antenna.
I now get every yellow grade station in my area according to antennaweb.
at first, i connected the antenna with the power adapter connected. my TV scanned and found only one channel. after disconnecting the power adapter, the TV found about 20 channels, including all the major networks. my apartment is close to some radio towers, so perhaps the signals are strong enough that the power amplification is not needed. nevertheless, try both with and without the power adapter connected.
Wasn't sure if these antennas really worked. After hooking up this is the best [$] I have ever spent!!
I moved into a new place in Atlanta recently and have not set up cable yet with my TV. Figured I'd try this out for a while in lieu of paying [$]+ a month to the cable TV cartel for the few hours of TV (read: advertisements) I watch every week. This antenna is so simple to test: plug it in, turn on TV, run a channel search. I came up with a total of 35 OTA channels in SD digital, HD, and analog. All of my familiar network stations and PBS came in crystal-clear HD with no ghosting or other artifacts typical of OTA reception. I ended up mounting it on my balcony on a broomstick and am completely satisfied with the purchase. My only minor gripe is that the OTA analog reception is worthless for being located less than 5-10 miles from the transmitters, but it will be gone all together in less than a year anyway, so good riddance.
Now I wouldn’t use this with an analog TV at all, but use it with a digital TV, Impressive. I have a Houseboat on Lake O The Pines in East Texas about 30 miles from anything. I only got 1 maybe 2 channels and poor quality. When I replaced the old TV with a digital and used this antenna, hey I get a picture as good as cable in town, plus I get 5 Stations. It is directional, so how you place it is important. All I have to say is I'm as happy a pig in mud with it.
Since I don't feel like wasting my money on satellite or cable TV, I am confined to over-the-air (terrestrial) television signals. As some may know, on February 17th, 2009, all TV signals will become digital. After receiving a [$]coupon from the government towards the purchase of a DTV converter box, I was dissppointed to see that I lost many channels, despite the fact I gained "sub-channels" and with a clearer picture. I tried this particular antenna, but it doesn't seem to receive channels any better than the one it replaced. In fact, I think I lost reception.
I am replacing a 7" circular loop that only got two of my five digital channels reliability (most of the time). I wanted this antenna inside, hidden behind my 32" wide-screen TV. Positioning this new antenna where my old loop had been gave no better signal strength as measured by the DishNetwork receiver. Both were pointed in the direction of the TV towers. For the higher numbered channels, I discovered rotating the antenna to horizontal improved the reception; it made it worse for the lower numbered channels! What to do?
I put the antenna on the floor to rest my arm, and glanced at the signal strenth. Wow, it was really high! To make a long story short, I ended up with the antenna on the floor pointed down -- but resting on the base of a metal floor lamp. The lamp was helping to pick up the signals as it was much higher than the original antenna location. Here is the signal strength comparison.
Channel - 7" hoop - Antenna
-- 16 ----- 64 ------ 80
-- 19 ----- 64 ------ 81
-- 27 ----- 64 ------ 81
-- 29 ----- 74 ------ 76
-- 41 ----- 72 ------ 74
So, like in real estate, location-location-location.
I returned this antenna and went back to my old rabbit ears. There is no such thing as an HDTV antenna.
from Hollywood, CA (right next to a freeway) on 2/29/2008
Although I have yet to search Radio Shack's web site for technical instructions, a [$] antenna should come with some instructions as to how to get the best reception. I will search for other people's tips, and sites on where to point the antenna in my area, but for [$], Radio Shack could include at least a flyer giving basic technical information in order to receive the best reception. As many are finding out, if the reception is not near perfect with digital TV signals, there is NO signal. Although the government did not think this digital TV thing through much, I would have thought that each household would not have to have a 50' tower on top of their house to get a good signal. Since I now know clear digital pictures do not mean a fail-proof signal being transmitted, I now must turn to Radio Shack. Come on, Radio Shack, help us!
I live in Rockville MD. I'm more facing Shady Grove Rd and Darnstown RD. (This is given so those who's direction may be different have some comparitive data). I get 25 Channels, all very very sharp and crisp. I didn't have an older antenna to compare results to, but I am well pleased. I am recommending to all who have the need for an antenna.
from Texas on 2/20/2008
Will pull in great reception if your using a dtv television or a dtv converter box.Not so well on analogs.
This was my second attempt of an antenna and just was not a consistent signal, first setup all the local HD channels came in good, then a day or so later could not buy a channel. Setup, use and look are great but just did not perform for me. I'm in a semi rural area, perhaps a more urban environment would be better
I am a second floor apartment dweller in Everett, Massachusetts. I just purchased a 32" HDTV to use as a super monitor for my new HP computer system. Now when I am downloading files from the Internet I just push the TV button on my remote and I am watching AMAZINGLY CLEAR HDTV while the files load. Life is good and for only [$] BUY IT!
I do not like this product. It is no better than "the bunny ears" I do not get any more channels with it nor do they come in any better. Do Not Buy This Antenna.
from Birmingham, AL on 2/15/2008
I purchased this antenna to complement a Samsung HD tuner. It brought in all of the local DTV channels. I had to play around with positioning a little to get them all. I really like the small size and the ease of mounting on the exterior of my house. Great product.
from Greensboro NC on 2/11/2008
Works great for me. I've had it for about 8 months and it's only erratic when it's very windy.
poor reception indoors or out, could only pick up half the HD channels in Houston.[...]
Just got a new HDTV and tried two other antennas. Both yielded 0 HD Channels and I live very close to the broadcast towers. So, on recommendation from a co-worker, I tried this one and it pulled in Digital channels while sitting on my floor before I mounted it. FANTASTIC!!!
from Loveland, Ohio on 2/3/2008
After trying an indoor HDTV antenna with no results I was very concerned about this one but I couldn't stand the thought of watching the Super Bowl in standard def. I have Dish w/ no locals and live about 26 miles North East of Cincinnati. I hooked up the antenna and just left if hanging from a gutter, turned on my Aquos and did a channel search, I was surprised to find out I picked up all Cincinnati locals & PBS (5,9,12,14,16,19,43,64) but I also was getting Dayton locals (2, 22, 45). I then mounted the antenna under the first floor roof eve (only 8ft high) and did another search. I am getting great reception. Wow! Such a small antenna. I was told by the guy at Radio Shack this antenna would not get ABC 9 in very well, but its great along with Dayton ABC. I am not sure how the tuner in my Aquos rates among other brands but I am very pleased. I am now going to try to route the signal through my Dish VIP622DVR so I can record.
Installed this antenna on the upright mounting post of my DirecTV HD Dish in Eureka, California and got an excellent, clear l picture from the few local stations that broadcast in digital: KEET (13.1 and 13.2), KVIQ (6.1), KBVU (29.1) and KIEM (3.1). They broad cast from Kneeland so point the antenna in that general direction.
Analog reception for other stations was decent and definitely better than rabbit ears and other indoor amplified antennas. In this area, an outdoor antenna with amplification is a must for good reception, though the terrain is very diverse (mountains, trees, etc). The TV stations have outdated and weak transmitting equipment, so getting the signal/reception I did was a surprise.
I used this product to supplement my new DirecTV set up and I completely cut off my service with our only local cable provider our only other source for local channels (Suddenlink Cable.) The quality of the picture I get with this antenna for local digital channels is better than what I was getting with Suddenlink. The few analog channels are definitely better via Suddenlink (KAEF/ABC, CW, My TV, Univision) but for the $$ savings, this antenna's worth it.
I connected this antenna to my Panasonic HDTV with Digital Tuner and the signal meter on the TV showed signals of 70-92% strength, and 65% or so seems to provide good enough signal strength for reception.
Hope this info helps...I recommend this product despite the fact that 3 different Radio Shack employees talked me out of buying this and initially sold me different antennas. I think most of their dissatisfied customers didn't have a digital tuner, or didn't understand the product.
[0 of 1 customers found this review helpful]
from Washington DC on 1/28/2008
I never got to try the antenna as the hex screw that tightens the the antenna bracket (universal joint) wouldn't budge to loosen. And yes, I was careful and used a quality hex wrench of the proper size. [...] The Philips works great.
from Mount Airy MD on 1/27/2008
I had the Terk model and was very disappointed and returned it for this model. I live in a very hilly area and was so shocked that this thing worked immediately when I stuck it out my window to test it. The only issue is we have two major cities that are 90 degrees apart and I have to move it back and forth to pick up the signals.
But for the money you cant beat it. Especially if you want to get into HDTV immediately
[1 of 1 customers found this review helpful]
Could only get 1, maybe 2, digital channels in my area.
Got a similarly priced GE-branded unit and get 7 or eight channels.
Might be better if mounted high and outdoors, but that's not an option for me. Must use it indoors near a window.
[1 of 1 customers found this review helpful]
from Fargo, ND on 1/20/2008
I live on the second floor of a 3 story apartment building facing south, so I only have clear view of one of the 4 local stations, but I can't even get that one to come in all the time. I may have just got a defective one, but there was no noticable difference in siganl strength (according to my Aquos) with or without the powered amplifier attached. Some channels came in when I had it inside and then dissapeared when I put it on by balcony (and vice versa). Bottom line: I messed around with this thing for 3 1/2 hours and only accomplished cursing the antenna, and cursing Dish Network for not carrying my locals in HD.
Wow, I am very impressed with this antenna. It is very small and can hide easily in the corner of a window. I live in South Mpls. There over 20 HDTV broadcast channels available in this area. I have varied results, to say the least.
I have a powered antenna that I bought with my HDTV (50" Samsung DLP). That thing is all but worthless. It combines the old-school UHF "ring" antenna with two long 4 foot rabbit ears. The worst part about it is the knob that you can use to dial in the signal strength. No matter where I turn the dial, it picks up some channels but I can't tune in others. If I turn the dial, I lose the channels I had but gain some others. There is no real sweet spot where you can get all of the HDTV broadcast channels.
Next up is the Silver Surfer. It came free with a BeyondTV bundle. This is a very good antenna. Not powered but still very good. It is in the middle of my living room and I can pick up most HDTV channels.
Now this antenna, the one for sale here, well it bumped things up a whole 'nother level. All I did was plug it in and turn it on. It is sitting pointing straight east out of a second-story window. Most of the antennas here are in Shoreview, which is 27 degrees from my house, so roughly north-northeast. With the antenna pointed straight east, I can get every single HDTV broadcast channel in the Twin Cities. If I pointed it west, I'm sure I could get the ION channels out of St. Cloud but that is not as important to me.
It is connected to a HDHomerun dual HD network tuner. I run BeyondTV on two different HTPC's in my house and they both work perfect with this. I went from picking up 5-9 channels to 21 channels....even the ones I will probably never watch. The tuner even works with XP MCE and Vista MCE.
But back to this antenna. It is very small but very powerful. I highly recommend this.
I tried a number of antennas likeed the size of this one, but it really is only slightly better than the rabit ears i was using. I am 35 miles from the 'hd towers in my area. ths product is a real dissapointment and I would not recomend it.
This is my second attempt on a HD antenna and has turned out to be great. I plugged it in to the coax over the air connection on my satellite reciever then set up the on screen menu. I picked up 33 high quality channels and all the locals transmit in digital or high def. I highly recommend this product!
from Indianapolis, IN on 1/12/2008
Having Dish Network is great unless they don't provide local channels in HD. With this particular antenna you are able to achieve all of your locals in HD. I have this antenna hooked up thru the Dish Network receiver and it works better then running it thru the TV. My suggestion with any antenna is shop around and try several modeles, but start with this one.
from Syracuse, NY on 1/9/2008
Bought this attena after noting I received a decent HD signal with an indoor rabbit ear type product. Hoped it would help reception but was mostly attracted by its design for indoors (small, clean, versatile placement). In the end I tried it outdoors and inside and noted no improvement in signal based on location. Overall it was about 10 to 15% better in signal reception than the HD rabbit ears but likely bvecause it could be placed attached to a wall anywhere I needed it. I would recommend it only if you are in an area free of mountains, heavy trees or other obstacles to the source signal. Don't expect miracles but it works adequately otherwise and looks good mounted indoors.
We use this on our camper. The signal is not as good as our $23.00 amplified rabbit ears, or an amplified RV antenna. We are close to the TV station.
from Davie, FL on 1/6/2008
I live in Davie, FL in a Concrete-Stucco house. The antenna didn't work at all indoors, which was not a suprise considering my XM antenna never did either and because my house is basically made out of concrete. I mounted the antenna on the east side of the house pointed slightly toward Palm Beach, FL and I can get in all Miami and Palm Beach channels without problem except for CBS 12 and Fox 29, which have periodicaly poor reception. I used a Samsung tuner with my HDTV projection monitor. I would suggest mounting this so it can extend above the roofline of your house to improve reception. I had to extend the included bracket a little to improve my reception. I will be looking for a different bracket in the future to improve the Palm Beach reception. This is why I bumped my review from 5 to 4 stars. Great antenna though as I enjoyed my first HD NFL playoff game in HD and Dolby 5.1 last night!!
After much research settled on this antenna. Pulls in all the HD signals in my area. No more adjusting rabbit ears. Thanks to all who left comments and opinions, one of the reasons I bought this.
I purchased this antenna about a month ago, because I live in a townhouse and im facing the opposite direction in which the digital sattellite reception is needed, so I am unable to install any kind of dish & there is only 1 cable company offered here in my complex and the reception is horrible because it is analog cable. So I purchased this antenna in hopes of bringing some life to my new HDTV, instead of just getting rabbit ears. To my surprise after setting it up over my mantle, I was recieving all the local channels in crystal clear Hi-Def. This product works like a charm, I would recommend it to anyone wanting HD local channels instead of paying a monthly fee for them!
from Wewahitchka, FL on 1/2/2008
I tried this out in a fairly remote area and had to upgrade to a full size antenna, it would be fine I think closer to town (I'm 25-50 mi. as the crow flies). Nice size and easy install.
live in an apartment in nyc and could not get a signal at all.. tried outside my window and stil no go picture total waste going back for an exchange.
I recently purchased this antenna for my HD Tuner. I hooked it up and "Wow"!!! I looked at the NFL games in HD and it was amazingly clear. I was also picking up stations I've never even heard of, which is great.
Don't cheat yourself.....get this antenna!
GREAT LITTLE ANTENNA! I RETURNED OTHER ANTENNA'S TO OTHER STORES BECAUSE OF POOR RECEPTION. THIS ANTENNA PICKED-UP ALL AVAILABLE HD CHANNELS WITHOUT ANY ISSUES. THIS ANTENNA COULD BE PORTABLE AS WELL!!
PLUG & PLAY INDOORS OR OUTSIDE.
from Bertram, Texas 78605-4291 on 12/28/2007
This product has enough hardware to get you setup in minutes. If you want to just mount it on the wall above and close to your television set in your room, get out your cross point screw driver and use the included screws out of the box and you will not be disappointed. If you want to put it on the pole to replace your bulky attenna outside your house, I suggest purchasing enough cable to complete your run. The contents of this product has the mount attachments to place it on a conventional antenna pole, and it is waterproof as well as neat in it's appearance. In the Hill Country northwest of Austin you will get more than just your Austin broadcasting stations in both analog and HDTV signal to both your cable ready and HDTV televisions. I have seen the value of this unit over the conventional rabbit ear HDTV combo units that are new in the store today. I am certain the simular products of the same design may work as well from other stores, however, this is the one I will be purchasing for myself to supplement my signal subscription with Direct TV. Also, I want to get the signals beyond the boundry of the Austin local broadcasting stations such as KNCT-TV out of Killeen/Copperas Cove which is PBS, and the Waco/Temple news along with the Greater Austin area local broadcasting stations. I was called to a location to add this product to a friend's new television set and was very impressed with it's ease of installment. Being one that wants the most value for my purchases, this is on my list for myself. My degree plan is Radio/Television Broadcasting with an emphasis in Multi-media, and have been a member in S.I.F.E. Some of you may be a bit like myself, I love to get the best experiance I can have on my own time out of life. I travel the world through the use of my Television and the support of veiwers like you!
I use this antenna on a 52" Sony Bravia 3000 LCD. It installed VERY easily! I simply have it located just behind my TV on the 2nd floor of my home. I have no problem at all receiving a multitude of SD and HD stations out of the Indianapolis area. I used the Sony Setup feature where it scans and locks in all stations received. 9 out of 10 of the HD signals are VERY strong with excellent pictures! I find it interesting that when I move the antenna's location or swivel so it "points" in a different direction, I still receive GREAT signals! This little [$]antenna is super. Oh, I'm about 15 miles from most stations in the greater Indy area.
This was my third antenna for my LCD on the patio.Funny thing is I have a Terk on my wall unit inside it it performs great. This TV is out on the patio (covered of course)and there seems to be some weirdness on the signals. I'm north of Miami, within 7 miles of all the DTV antennas. I mounted this on the wall of the patio and got all of the HDTV channels except two, the ones that are VHF based. (ch 7 and 10)So I made up an RG6 cable, ran it through my facia board and mounted it on the chimney. Still barely got 40% signal strength. I turned it more towards the two "V" channels and got up to 50%, but lost several channels that were 10 degrees off axis. Since I use satelite for Standard def, all Im interested in is HDTV,[...] I guess that the VHF frequencies on HD aren't this antennas strong points.
from Minneapolis, MN on 12/14/2007
I tried two other antennas that did not perform well. This antenna did not initally work much better when I put in my house. FYI I live in stucco covered house so I essentially am surrounded by a metal cage. I tried and tested this antenna by mounting it just outside my wall with the antenna facing the direction of the TV towers 10 miles away and it worked great!
I now have all the channels in digital HD signal coming in perfect. The normal air channels are not perfect, but pretty close. All the air channels with OK signal have a digital counterpart that is just fine in my market.
The weather has been very cold in Minneapolis for the last two weeks and so far this antenna is working fine in the 5-10 degree temperatures.
from McAllen Texas on 12/13/2007
Even after reading all of the reviews I was a little skeptical about how this antenna would work in my area. Well let me tell you, this little antenna sure does work. Before I installed this antenna I had a set of HDTV rabbit ears on my Dish receiver which allowed me to receive 4 local HD channels, after I installed the R/S antenna I got HD channels I didn’t even know we had in my area (deep So. TX) transmitter towers are located approximately 35 miles away. This antenna worked great I even canceled my local channels subscription with Dish Network. Oh by the way I installed this antenna inside my home attached right behind my HD TV frame with wire ties.
Purchased to get uhf/vhf signal 10 miles from source in NYC. Purchased for apt that had wire to boom on roof severed and did not want hassel of gaining roof access. Hooked up and pluged unit in and to my surprise picture was worse than just the severed wire hanging out the window. The folks at RS said it was made to get HD signals.That may well be, however the box states that it will pick up uhf/vhf signals as well. ,but if your looking for a uhf/vhf antenna look elseware.
from Clovis, CA on 12/1/2007
Outstanding device! Reception is strong and clear. I bought the antenna a couple days ago and connected it to my JVC 61" HD-ILA television. I had been relying on cable. I was pleasantly surprised to receive more local HD channels than available by cable. Plus, the over-the-air HD broadcasts include guide information that the cable service did not offer. I am now on the phone to discontinue my cable service.
I placed the antenna in my media closet, connected the signal amplifier to the antenna with the provided 6" cable, and the signal amplifier receiver plug to about a 30' cable that runs inside the wall from the closet to the wall outlet where it connects to the TV. I've found the best reception is received when a signal amplifier is connected as close as possible to an antenna.
from Troy, MI on 11/28/2007
Picks up about 6 local channels within 10 miles of stations. Compact, quality, and works!
from Houston, TX on 11/26/2007
This was the 3rd antenna. I wanted free HDTV to go with the new LCD and wouldn't stop until I picked it up. A Phillips and another indoor [...] HDTV antenna with Remote (The UFO looking one) picked up channels but didn't give me enough clarity and the 20+ off-air HD channels cut in and out. They had rabbit ears and high gain but didn't do the job. I bought this one with the idea of putting it outside on the porch because I face west in a 1st floor condo and the majority of the broadcast antenna's are south. I hooked it up and gave it power while it was just laying on the table inside the front door without facing any antenna's and it picked up almost every HD channel in the Houston Metro plex. I turned to FOX and CBS and both came in crystal clear. I mounted it on the ceiling inside the door where it is out of the way to save from having to run more cable outside and it has worked ever since without problems. This is very small and hardly noticeable and is reachable to turn 360 degrees or move around while mounted on the ceiling. Didn't have to put it outside at all and it picked up more channels while the other HDTV rabbit ear antenna's that boasted higher gain on them. I'd recommend this to anyone who is in a 1st floor apartment or condo like me who has a lot of trees in the way. My neighbor behind me is on the 1st floor with an entire building between him and the broadcast towers and he bought and installed the same model and picked up all the channels also. The FOX sunday football games looked FANTASTIC with this antenna!!!!
from Maidens, VA on 11/26/2007
We live 30mi outside of Richmond, VA and purchased this antenna based on it's size profile and appearance, and were pleasantly surprised with the amount and quality of channels that we were able to pick up. We were using an analogue antenna on a non digital TV, and decided to get another TV for our bedroom. This one is digital, and we went from 7 channels on our old TV to about 30 on our new TV with this antenna. We have it mounted in a high corner of our room as if it was a speaker. Very low profile, and excellent reception. We are extremely pleased with it's performance. Especially, the Digital Channels in HD, they are phenomenal.
I believe this antenna will work for someone who is close to the towers but for someone further away, stay away from this one. It did only slightly better than an antenna I bought 10 years ago and is much harder to aim.
i put this antenna in my bedroom tv and i didn't even have to mount it outdoors. i live in an apartment and i get great hdtv reception. i put it on a small table and put a picture in front of it to hide it and it works great.......
from West Los Angeles, CA on 11/21/2007
In Los Angeles all the OTA HD stations are UHF, and always had poor UHF before, lot of multipath, so tried this. Thought it was just for UHF, but it also returns VHF - except channel 2. Filtered out VHF and combined this signal with outdoor VHF antenna, and it works great, even indoors (on third floor), 30 miles from Mt. Wilson. Gets all digital channels, though nbc.1 is weak. All other VHF channels (analog) are plenty strong, they should add one more low-freq element, and they'd have something. Wish it was more directi